Roast Chicken With Grapes

I often want to cook something different when it comes to holidays and special events, without going too much off the beaten path. A few years ago, I came across this recipe and it was just the perfect change it needed to make a whole roast chicken recipe feel new again. The combination of grapes (grape juice), garlic and tasty cooking fat give this chicken recipe a tenderness and taste that is incomparable from most other recipes. All my family and friends are now often requesting this recipe when I ask them over for dinner. They just love it and can’t believe how cooked grapes could taste so good. That roast chicken with grapes is fresh tasting, sweat and easy to prepare. It can also easily be adapted for more people by adding another chicken or two and adjusting the amount of ingredients accordingly.

The hardest part of this recipe is to butterfly the chicken if you’ve never done it before, but don’t worry as I explain the process in details in the preparation section of the recipe. I wouldn’t leave you hanging! This way of preparing a chicken is a quick and efficient way to cook a whole chicken more evenly, keep it moist and give it extra flavor. It seems that this is a very popular method especially in southern California.

This dish is excellent and works great with a nice salad on the side or a mix of fresh vegetables. The mix that’s left in the bottom of the roasting pan can also be used as a great sauce. Just add some water to it after the chicken is cooked and removed from the pan.

Roast Chicken With Grapes Recipe

Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 Whole chicken;
• 4 tbsp Paleo cooking fat at room temperature;
• ½ tsp sea salt;
• 1 head garlic;
• 2 pounds red seedless grapes;
• Fresh sage leaves;

Preparation

1. Preheat your oven to 375 F.
2. Place the chicken breast-side down, on a cutting board. Cut along both sides of the backbone from end to end with a kitchen shear and remove. Flip the chicken breast-side up, and open it like a book. Press firmly on the breastbone with your palm to flatten.
3. In a small bowl mix 2 tbsp of your cooking fat with one garlic clove, minced, and the sea salt. Loosen the chicken skin and spread half of the cooking fat mixture underneath the skin. Put 2 or 4 sage leaves under the skin, keeping them flat. Rub the other half of the cooking fat mix on the skin.
4. Take half of the grapes and place them on the bottom of a roasting pan. With a potato masher, mash the grapes until the skin burst. Cut the remaining garlic horizontally and mix it whit the grapes. Add 2 tbsp of cooking fat to the mix.
5. Place the chicken in the roasting pan on top of the grapes opened like a book breast-side up and cook in the oven for about an hour.
6. Take the other half of the grapes and put them on a cooking pan, bake for the last 30 min of the required time for the chicken.
7. Once fully cooked remove the chicken from the pan and serve on a plate with the cooked grapes on the side and you are ready for a feast.
8. You can use the juice from the grapes to make a delicious sauce.